Endure My Ass

Following the signs, Li Wei passed through a corridor and arrived at the entrance to the Lower Third Order martial artist assessment waiting area.

Two people were already lined up ahead of her. She hurried over to join the queue, craning her neck curiously to peek inside.

A spacious area of three to four hundred square meters came into view. There were no windows, but the lighting was bright, and row after row of seats was packed with people taking the assessment.

The noisiest group by far was the cluster of young people in the center.

They wore matching black standard martial arts uniforms with subtle patterns, the emblem of a winged horse soaring through clouds embroidered over their left chests—the crest of Tengxiang Martial Arts University.

A group assessment organized by the school? Li Wei guessed, inexplicably recalling the deserted Anhe Martial University during the holidays. The difference was as plain as day...

Soon, it was Li Wei's turn to enter.

She took out her assessment card and lightly swiped it over the gate, then copied the people ahead of her and blew into the little device handed over by the staff member.

The green light came on. Just as she lifted her foot to enter, the staff member reached out to stop her.

The staff member's expression was rather complicated as she raised a hand and pointed at Li Wei's clothes.

Only then did Li Wei belatedly lower her head and look herself over.

She was wearing a neatly tailored dress, with a pair of delicate little heels on her feet...

Damn, she'd forgotten to change!

Looking around again, everyone else was either in martial arts uniforms or crisp combat attire. Dressed like this, she looked like an idiot who had wandered onto the wrong set...

She hesitated for a moment, then couldn't be bothered to go back home and change.

The Jiang family's "Nine Moon Reflection Swords" followed the immortal maiden route—light, nimble, and flowing. There was absolutely no way she'd accidentally expose herself!

Yesterday's fight had been so intense, and nothing had happened. How could she possibly wipe out in a mere assessment today?

Besides, she was wearing "Li Wei's Special-Edition Safety Shorts" underneath!

She told the staff member there was no problem.

Seeing that she insisted, the staff member didn't say anything more and pointed inside. "Find an empty seat and wait for the announcement to call your number."

Then she put on a stern face and added, "Private fighting is forbidden in the waiting area! Violators will have their assessment qualifications revoked, and the Alliance may impose additional penalties depending on the severity!"

Li Wei rubbed her nose, almost wanting to laugh.

Ma'am, do I look like someone who'd start a private fight? I'm clearly the image of a delicate little white flower! Why aren't you warning me to watch out for perverts instead?

The staff member seemed to see through her thoughts and smiled too. "Routine procedure. Just a reminder—don't take it to heart."

Li Wei tugged at the corner of her mouth and turned to enter the waiting area.

She had originally wanted to tuck herself away in some out-of-the-way corner, but after looking around, she found there weren't many empty seats. The only remaining one was beside the Tengxiang Martial Arts University students.

She had barely walked over and hadn't even sat down when two Tengxiang female students glared at her warily, like little chicks guarding their food.

Li Wei couldn't be bothered with them. She squeezed the two girls, who had taken up three seats, back into their own places, then dropped into the empty seat. Crossing her arms over her chest, she elegantly folded her long legs, her aura fully unleashed.

"Hey!" The girl seated right beside Li Wei was displeased. "Someone's sitting here! It's my classmate's seat!"

Li Wei didn't even raise her eyelids as she looked at her. "Oh? Where is she?"

The girl choked, then craned her neck stubbornly. "She... she went to take the assessment!"

"And then?" Li Wei asked again, her voice mild.

The girl fell silent.

Who would come back here after finishing the assessment? She couldn't exactly lie and say her classmate would be back any second.

The other girl, sitting a little farther away, couldn't stand it any longer. She had already disliked Li Wei's outfit, and now that she heard her speaking so aggressively, her temper flared.

"This is an area reserved by our school. Even if no one's here, you can't sit there!"

Li Wei finally looked up at her, her gaze cool. "Well, I'm sitting here now. What are you going to do about it?"

The girl was so angry that she wanted to reach out and drag her away, but Li Wei reminded her coolly, "Hey, they said no private fights. You'll lose your qualifications."

The girl froze mid-motion, her face flushing crimson. In the end, she didn't dare make a move. She sat back down resentfully, her gaze scraping over Li Wei like knives.

Li Wei didn't put the two of them in her eyes at all. Her attention shifted to the large screen on the wall ahead.

At that moment, an assessment was being broadcast live.

A middle-aged martial artist wielded an assessment longsword black as ink, locked in an evenly matched battle with a matte-gray humanoid puppet about six feet tall.

A line of small text sat in the upper-left corner of the screen: Second Order Martial Artist Practical Assessment (Zhang Yu)—Live

Li Wei watched with great relish, only lacking a bucket of popcorn.

But just because she didn't want trouble didn't mean others felt the same.

Before even a few minutes had passed, the "whispers" of the two girls beside her drifted over. They weren't loud or soft, just the right volume for her to hear.

"Tsk, tsk, what young lady is this? Coming to an assessment dressed like that?"

"Exactly. Does she really think this is a beauty pageant runway? Does she think a pretty face will get her through? Martial artist assessments are about fists. Without real strength, she can just wait to make a fool of herself."

"She doesn't look like she has any real skills. Nothing but empty flash."

"If you ask me, she's probably wearing some knockoff, hoping to come here and hook herself a rich guy..."

"Mm, I think so too..."

The two went back and forth, the contempt and sourness in their words practically overflowing.

Li Wei's brows shot up, anger surging higher and higher as her right hand instinctively reached for the clasp at her waist.

Damn it, did she really look that easy to bully?

Just as she was about to teach them a lesson, she remembered the rule against private fighting. She held herself back.

The assessment came first... the assessment came first... Once she got her First Order martial artist certification, she still had to grind rifts to level up! She couldn't lose the big picture over a small matter!

Li Wei took a deep breath, then slowly let it out.

Li Wei, stay calm!

Li Wei clenched her fists.

The world is so wonderful, yet I'm so irritable... Is that good? That's not good...

Li Wei gritted her teeth.

Inner peace!

Inner peace.

Inner peace...

She forced herself to keep watching the big screen.

At that moment, the middle-aged martial artist named Zhang Yu stepped forward, raised his ring-hilted saber high, and delivered a powerful vertical chop at the mannequin!

But the mannequin reacted even faster.

It lifted and guided its arm, casually deflecting the force.

Zhang Yu staggered from the pull, nearly falling flat on his face. He had to roll like a donkey to evade the mannequin's follow-up punch.

Hiss—!

At the sight of the assessment mechanical mannequin's combat strength, a chorus of sharp inhales rose from the waiting area.

The battle between the two sides was utterly unremarkable in Li Wei's eyes, but watching this livestream format, her thoughts gradually began to stir.

Oh-ho, brilliant! This livestream was practically essential for showing off!

When it was her turn, she'd take it down with one sword! Whoosh! Slice that robot's head right off!

Eh, wait, no. Following the usual script, she had to leave the audience some time to be shocked... If she moved too fast, everyone wouldn't even have time to cry, "Terrifying indeed!" How boring would that be...

Mm... Got it! She could first circle around it a few times with her movement technique, show off a little, then this... that... and then...

Just as she was happily plotting her grand plan to show off, another buzzing murmur drifted into her ears.

This time, it wasn't the two girls beside her, but people a little farther away discussing something.

The voices came in fragments, and she could only vaguely catch words like "Fang City Jiang Family," "their ancestors used to be rich," "Little Sticker Professional," "haven't produced a Sixth Order martial artist in decades," "Dong Shi Imitates the Frown," "vanity at work," and "white lotus flower."

Were they chirping about the Little White Lotus on her forehead?

Li Wei's fists instantly hardened, and her blood and qi began to roar through her body under the influence of her emotions.

Calm down! Calm down! If I fight privately, I won't get my martial artist certificate. Without the certificate, I can't enter the rifts. If I can't enter the rifts, I can't grow stronger! Calm down! Li Wei, endure it!

She repeatedly warned herself, trying hard to take deep breaths.

The two female students beside her pricked up their ears and quickly figured out what was going on.

One of them immediately grew excited. Pointing at the Lotus Petals mark between Li Wei's brows, she raised her voice an octave.

"Hey, you're from the Jiang Family, right? No wonder you stuck a lotus flower there. Say, where did you get that sticker custom-made? It looks so real, hahahaha—"

The moment she said that, quite a few male martial artists nearby who had been secretly sizing Li Wei up showed looks of sudden realization. Their gazes at her turned teasing as well.

Seeing this, the other female student felt that she had regained some face and immediately joined in. "Yeah, yeah! Tell us where you bought it! I'll get one too someday—"

Li Wei could endure no longer. She threw a punch, sending the heckling girl flying like a torn sack. The girl crashed into and overturned a row of chairs behind her, sending the four or five Tengxiang Martial Arts University students seated there sprawling in all directions!

"I'll endure your damn head!" Li Wei shook out her fist, her dress fluttering despite the lack of wind.

"Ah—!"

The nearby girl's eyes widened. She screamed and was just about to retreat when Li Wei grabbed her by the collar and drove a knee into her abdomen!

She didn't even manage a groan before crumpling limply to the floor.

That was like poking a hornet's nest!

More than forty Tengxiang Martial Arts University students sprang to their feet all at once. They were all members of the school team and had trained together for at least two years.

With camaraderie and hot-blooded youth running high, who still cared whether she was a beauty or not?

Several of the ones closest by, the quickest to react, had already attacked Li Wei without hesitation!

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